And be ye kind one to another,
tenderhearted, forgiving one another,
even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you.
Ephesians 4:32
Over the next months Courtney kept her feelings for Aaron to herself. She looked forward to the special times at night when she would sit cradling her baby in her arms while listening to him tell his children bedtime stories in front of the fire. When the children were in bed, that was their time alone—Aaron’s and her’s. Courtney would place her baby in the crib to the side of the room and they would talk over hot tea for hours.
Aaron went to bed after Courtney and baby Gabriel went back to their cabin. Even though she couldn’t do as much work as she’d done before the baby had come, his children were looking after her and doing more than they’d ever done.
Jared, Ben, and Amy were receiving life lessons about taking care of others and that was even more important than having a nanny who fed them and performed chores. What he thought had been a negative at the start had turned into a huge positive. Courtney had changed all of their lives for the better. He noticed a distinct change in the mood of his children since she’d arrived. They had a light on their faces that hadn’t been there since they'd lost their mother.
Baby Gabriel was just past eight weeks old and Aaron considered that everything in his life was fine. The only thing that might change that was his sister-in-law, Willa. He had yet to mention to Courtney that Willa and a friend were coming to visit. He’d received a letter from Bessie telling him that they’d be arriving on the Thursday afternoon bus. There was no ‘do you mind if we come to stay,’ or anything like that, but that was Willa’s way. She was a forceful woman—attractive, but forceful. Aaron was surprised that she remained single and he hoped that Willa would not ruin what he had with Courtney. If she saw how he cared for Courtney she might very well try to ruin things like she’d tried to ruin his relationship with her very own sister, Ellen.
“My schweschder-in-law, Willa, is coming to visit,” Aaron announced to Courtney the next day while she was preparing their evening meal.
“Wunderbaar! How long since you’ve seen her?”
“Let me see.” He put his hand to his chin with his elbow on the table. “The last time I saw her was at Ellen’s funeral.”
Courtney nodded. “Was that in the letter you got from Bessie yesterday?”
“Jah. I forgot to mention it to you last night.” He didn’t think it right to tell Courtney that he’d been fond of Willa until he’d met her older sister, whom he then married. “She’s bringing a friend.”
“When are they arriving?”
“They’ll be here on Thursday afternoon.”
“Gut. How will we accommodate them? Will I put the two younger ones in with Jared and give Willa and her friend a room each?”
“That’s exactly what I would’ve suggested.” He looked up at her and gave her a big smile as she poured his kaffe. “Sit down with me while the children are quiet. You’ve got time don’t you?”
“Jah, I do. Everything’s cooking now.”
“I’m surprised that Amy’s left you alone. She’s usually hanging on to you.”
Courtney pulled out a chair and sat down. “She does like to be included in her brothers' games. They’re building a farm out of their blocks and they found stones outside that they said look like farm animals.”
Aaron chuckled. “Have I told you how you’ve changed our lives?”
“You did—once or maybe twice.” A giggle escaped Courtney’s lips.
“I don’t know what any of us would do without you now.” He stared into her eyes and Courtney looked away. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to embarrass you, but things that I thought were impossible and would never happen…” He shook his head. “I’m no gut with saying how I feel.”
She looked into his eyes. “Just say it out loud without thinking.”
He took a deep breath and looked into her blue eyes that were staring into his. “I like you, Courtney, more than a nanny or a friend. I know it’s early—far too early for either of us, but I wanted to tell you how I feel so there is no misunderstanding between us.”
Courtney’s eyes had grown wider as she listened to his words and just as she opened her mouth to speak, Amy walked into the kitchen.
“Miss Courtney, come see our farm.”
“Adults are talking, Amy, and you just interrupted us.”
She lowered her head. “Sorry.” She looked up at her father. “Excuse me, Dat.”
“That’s better. You must wait until no one is speaking and then say ‘excuse me.’”
“Can I talk now?”
“Go ahead.”
“Miss Courtney, will you come see?”
Courtney looked at Aaron who smiled and gave a little nod. “I’d love to see what you’ve done.” Amy took Courtney’s hand and led her to the corner of the living room.
Aaron was disappointed that he’d been interrupted. He wanted to know how Courtney felt about him. Even though he sensed she felt the same toward him, there would be no certainty until he heard her words. It was too early to discuss marriage because he still carried pain in his heart over losing Ellen, but if he hadn’t told Courtney he was developing feelings for her, she might have taken another job elsewhere. She seemed to receive many letters—what if one of those letters contained a better offer of employment?
He took a mouthful of coffee while listening to the laughter of his children and the words of encouragement from the woman who’d enhanced their lives. He’d already lost one amazing woman and he was going to do everything in his power to hang on to Courtney. Closing his eyes he knew he’d feel great contentment if Courtney and Gabriel were to become part of their family. Rather than the anxiousness that now churned his gut with knowing she could leave at any time, he knew in his heart he’d feel a sense of peace and fulfillment if they merged their households. Even though his head told him it was too soon, a part of him longed to care for Courtney and Gabriel as part of his family.
Aaron walked over to the coffee pot and poured himself another coffee and one for Courtney, hoping she’d come back and finish their conversation.
Courtney listened while Jared, Ben, and Amy told her all about their model farm and what animals they had. Each of them had separate animals that they kept in three barns all built from wooden blocks.
“You’ve all done so well,” she said when they finished telling her about their creation.
“Do you want to stay and play with us?” Ben asked.
“Any other time I would, but I must go back to the kitchen and speak to your vadder before dinner is ready. Ten more minutes of play and you’ll have to wash up for the evening meal. Jared, you can watch the time.”
Jared glanced up at the clock on the mantel and nodded.
“Gut.” Courtney got off the blanket on the floor where they had spread out their blocks. Aaron liked her and she liked him. What was to stop them from taking their relationship further? If they did and things didn’t work out as they both hoped, she’d have to find work elsewhere. It wasn’t a good idea to jeopardize her job. She’d have to tell him she’d prefer things remained the same between them.
When she stepped back into the kitchen, he looked up. “There you are. I’m glad to see they let you go.” He chuckled. “I’ve poured you some kaffe.”
“Is that your second cup?” When he nodded, she added, “I hope you’ll still have room for dinner.” She sat in front of her coffee and took a sip. “Denke.”
“About what I was saying before you were stolen away.”
She put the cup down and stared into his eyes to feel her heart melt and her defenses against him slide away. “Yes?”
“Do you feel the same way as I?”
All she could do was nod. Her steely reserve was no match for the way he made her feel.
He reached out across the table and took her hand in his. A sense of relief washed over her as though her life would never be the same. Aaron was one of the nicest, kindest men she’d ever known and she felt completely at home with him and his children as though this is what God had planned for both of them. They were perfect for one another. They’d both lost their spouses with whom they’d each had children. Who better to understand how much she missed her husband than someone who’d loved and also lost?
The children interrupted them by walking through the kitchen to get to the washroom where they would wash their hands before dinner.
He let go of her hand but not before giving her a special smile.
“I better get dinner finished and when the children have washed their hands, they can set the table.”
“You’ve got everyone organized,” Aaron said.
“I will have, if Gabriel sleeps through the meal.”
Throughout the meal that night there was a quiet understanding between Aaron and Courtney. Courtney felt her stomach lurch every time they caught each other’s eyes.
As soon as dinner was over, Gabriel woke. Courtney fed him in the privacy of Jared’s bedroom while Jared organized Ben and Amy to clean the kitchen and do the dishes. While Courtney was breastfeeding, she could hear the children talking as they cleared the dishes and filled the sink with water. She’d taken a big risk to keep her pregnancy a secret when she’d accepted the job as nanny, but everything had worked out perfectly. There had been bumps along the road at the beginning, but now those snags were behind her.